LBSU Softball Continues Big West Competition At UC Santa Barbara

Friday, April 16

Santa Barbara, Calif.

1 p.m.

Long Beach State University

UC Santa Barbara

Photo by: John Fajardo

LBSU Softball Continues Big West Competition At UC Santa Barbara

4/13/2021 12:40:00 PM | Softball

Game Notes - UCSB

The Beach will try to extend a seven-game winning streak against the Gauchos.

By: Roger Kirk, Assistant Athletics Director, Athletic Communications

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- The Beach is at the halfway point of the conference schedule, and will try to extend their winning streak on the road this weekend at UC Santa Barbara. Similar to last weekend, the Beach will play four games in Santa Barbara, with the first three counting towards Big West play while the final game will be played as a non-conference contest.

LEADING OFF
• The Beach is at the halfway point of the conference schedule, and will try to extend their winning streak on the road this weekend at UC Santa Barbara. Similar to last weekend, the Beach will play four games in Santa Barbara, with the first three counting towards Big West play while the final game will be played as a non-conference contest.

• All four games will be streamed on BigWest.tv, and action starts at 1 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday with a doubleheader scheduled for Saturday.

• Also announced this week was a rescheduled game from March, as Long Beach State and No. 2 UCLA identified May 5 as a date to resume their March 4 game. Now a doubleheader, first pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. at the LBSU Softball Complex.

• Long Beach State has been putting up outstanding numbers, leading the Big West in both pitching and hitting. As a team, LBSU is hitting .329, 15th in the country, and ranks 12th in ERA with a 1.57 Team ERA. Of the team's five losses, four have come by just one run and the Beach are paced by Kellie White and Shannon Haddad, The duo rank 1-2 in strikeouts and wins in Big West play.

• As a team, Long Beach State hit .433 in the sweep of UC San Diego, and had five players who started all four games hit .500 or better in Alyssa Gonzalez, Emily Salazar, Breezy Wise, Naomi Hernandez, and Suzy Brookshire.

• Junior Emily Salazar went 7-for-12 with two doubles and triple in the series, and extended her hitting streak to 12 games, which is now tied for the seventh-longest in school history and active heading into the UCSB series.

• Long Beach State was dominant in a sweep on the road at CSUN, outscoring the Matadors 24-3 over the three game series. Alyssa Gonzalez hit .583 with a three-run home run, and Shannon Haddad went 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA and 20 strikeouts as the pair swept the Big West Player, Pitcher and Freshman of the Week awards.

• In the series finale against UC Riverside, Suzy Brookshire etched her name in the Long Beach State record books, going 3-for-3 with a trio of home runs, the first player in the 41-year history of Beach Softball to hit three home runs in a game.

• Those efforts from Haddad and Brookshire led the duo to claim two of the Big West weekly honors, as Brookshire was named Player of the Week and Haddad took home Pitcher of the Week honors awarded by the conference on March 29.

• That gives LBSU three pitching awards, as senior Kellie White was named the Big West Pitcher of the Week on March 15 for her role in a perfect 4-0 week. White pitched a complete game shutout with 10 strikeouts against San Diego, and then came back and didn't allow an earned run in another complete game against LMU. On the week, White went 2-0 with 12 strikeouts and allowed just five hits over 13.0 innings pitched.

PLAYER NOTES
• After the NCAA announced blanket 2020 eligibilty relief, Kellie White was one of the major senior contributors who returned to the Beach after an excellent 2020. White leads the Beach in innings pitched at 64.0 and strikeouts with 58, and has posted a 8-3 record with a Big West-best 1.09 ERA. White ranks 27th nationally in ERA.

• Also returning as a senior and playing a big role has been Breezy Wise. After hitting .380 to lead the team last season, Wise has played every game in 2021 and is averaging .345 with seven doubles, four triples and 17 RBI, slugging .655 on the year.

• 2019 All-Region and All-Big West selection Alyssa Gonzalez continues to shine for the Beach. After leading the team with crucial hits such as a walkoff double against No. 2 Oklahoma one year ago, Gonzalez leads the squad with a .484 batting average and is reaching base at a .661 clip, walking nine times on the year. The junior is slugging .661 and has 17 RBI, tied for second on LBSU.

• A wave of Division I transfers have stepped in an played a key role in 2021 for Long Beach State, as all four are making a big impact.

• Freshman Shannon Haddad has made nine starts for the Beach and has posted an unbeaten 7-0 record with a 1.74 ERA and 48 strikeouts, making a dangerous 1-2 punch in the circle with Kellie White. Haddad went 11-2 with a 1.00 ERA in 2020 with San Jose State.

• Suzy Brookshire has cemented her role in the heart of the lineup with Gonzalez and Wise. Hitting .383, Brookshire leads the team with eight home runs and 31 RBI, and is slugging .867 as another dangerous hitter for the Beach. Also coming from San Jose State is catcher Ashley Machado, who has started 15 games behind the plate and crushed a key home run against Loyola Marymount.

• Cam Cecil has all but one game of the season at shortstop for Long Beach State, making just three errors while batting .294. Cecil has added 13 RBI and has six extra-base hits on the year.

• The Big West Freshman of the Year in 2018, Naomi Hernandez has returned and has returned to the form that saw her earn national attention that season. Hitting .418, Hernandez trails just Gonzalez in the Big West with a .543 on-base percentage with 13 walks, putting her in contention to again earn postseason All-Big West hardware.

• In addition to Kellie White, Long Beach State returns three other pitchers this season. Morgan Quinlan has made one start and four appearances on the year, striking out 10 in 9.2 innings, while Samantha Fowler also returns after posting the lowest ERA one season ago among LBSU's returning pitchers. Presley Miraglia also returns after pitching 10.1 innings of relief as a sophomore.

• Lilyanna Martinez has been a bright spot among the true freshman who have joined the program this season. Martinez has made nine starts and is hitting .370 as well as showcasing her speed on the basepaths, a perfect 5-for-5 in stolen base attempts. Sophia Fernandez has also had a strong start at the plate, hitting .333 with a pair of walks in 11 plate appearances.